Wildlife Defence League (WDL) has taken to the field to document the BC government’s ongoing wolf cull, to show BC taxpayers what their money is being used for. Members of the organization are in the Peace Region, a pristine area that is home to numerous species of wildlife, including caribou, grizzly bears, moose and wolves.

Caribou populations in the South Selkirk Region and Peace Region have declined at an alarming rate. This decline has caused an outpouring of support for the species and a call to action to protect them. For years, our government has supported the decimation of caribou by leasing land to the mining, forestry, and oil and gas industries that encroach on their habitat. They have also done little to deter recreational sports, such as snowmobiling and heli -skiing in areas where caribou herds migrate.

In mid-January, the Liberal government announced a plan to protect these caribou by gunning down packs of wolves from helicopters, some of which are tagged with GPS collars. Killing wolves to save caribou is not supported by empirical evidence and only further demonstrates the province’s pattern of prioritizing resource extraction industries in British Columbia over the environment and animals. The recent approval of Site C Dam by the government of British Columbia, which will encroach on important caribou habitat and is estimated to cause a 31 to 37 per cent decline in the species, is another such example.

Wolves live in tight-knit family packs, looking out for one another and caring to the needs of each member. The aerial gunning and slaughter of these creatures is not the answer. Wolves have lived in harmony with the land for thousands of years.

WDL intends to monitor and document the taxpayer funded wolf hunt on public lands.

We are calling on the BC government to stop killing wolves and to create a truly sustainable caribou recovery plan that takes into consideration the root cause of decline of the species.

We are also calling out to the public who wish to support our efforts and who have any information about where the hunts are taking place. If you have information, please contact us at wildlifedefenceleague@gmail.com.